5 Times Luck Held Out And 1 Time It Didn't
by Heartless-are-squirrels
Summary: For the cresswell ship week prompt: lucky
1.

The first time was obviously when they survived the crash to earth. Cress was so excited to finally make it to the planet she had been surveying almost her entire life, and especially with the man she had a huge crush on. She was so thrilled, she didn't even mind having her hair chopped off. Thorne would later grumble about the whole incident, about losing his sight, but even he would admit to being happy to be alive. The following trek across the desert would be difficult, and they had so much ahead of them that they needed to do, and it was overwhelming- but they were both alive.

2.

The second time was surviving the trek across the desert. Yes, the people who had saved them had ended up kidnapping Cress later, but they still wouldn't have survived without them. The desert was harsh and unforgiving, and Cress had no experience with it. Thorne couldn't even help her out very much without his sight, and she had had to guide him to the best of her abilities. The folks who had given them food and water, and helped them into town, had been the key to their survival. They never would have been able to get to Cinder otherwise, and would most likely have died in the desert, without anyone to mourn them or even find their bodies.

3.

The third time was their reunion in Farfrah. Despite being totally blind and having to trust an android without a personality chip to get there, Thorne had managed. Despite the likelihood of Cinder being there, she had been there. And despite the slim chance of the person buying shells being someone that they could trust, they had been. And so Thorne and Cress had been reunited again.

4.

The fourth time was when Jacin and Cress ran into Thorne and the others. Iko had been the first to spot her, and had crushed her in a bear hug, before Thorne had seen Cress and ran to her. Cress had felt tears welling up in her eyes, tears of happiness and relief. Jacin rolled his eyes at the pair, but Cress couldn't care less. She and Thorne were together again.

5.

The fifth time was when Thorne kissed Cress and finally admitted to loving her. He had kissed her hard, trying to put all the words he couldn't say into the kiss. She had been shocked at first, still mad at him for kissing the Lunar lady, but she had found herself melting into the kiss. She held him against herself, and kissed him, despite her lack of talent. They had, of course, been interrupted rudely by a guard before Thorne could finally tell Cress those words, but it was fine. They were in the middle of a revolution, after all. They had a queen to overthrow and another queen to crown. And also, Cress hoped, there would be time later for him to finish telling her.

+1.

Their luck didn't hold out during the fight with Levana. Thorne hated himself for not being able to fight against Levana, for how easily she had been able to control him. Logically he knew that Lunars had this gift over every Earthen without the spinal chip, but he still had felt the knife go through Cress's stomach, and had felt her body convulse in pain. His heart had stopped at the sound of Cress crying out in pain. When Wolf and Scarlet had appeared in the doorway, he had finally been free from Levana as she took control over Scarlet. Cinder had pulled the knife from Cress's body, and Thorne looked at her in terror, not trusting his own body to help her.

By the time Wolf had picked Thorne up in one arm, and Cress in the other, it was too late for Cress. The blood flow wasn't blocked anymore, since the knife had been taken out, and so it flowed freely, covering Wolf and herself. Wolf ran as fast as he could to find help for them, but it wasn't fast enough.

Cress could feel herself fading and fading fast. Her whole body was in such intense pain, and she could feel her functions shutting down. She was vaguely aware of being picked up and carried, by whom and to where, she had no idea; and if she was honest, she didn't care.

 _This isn't such a bad way to go,_ she mused. She had total faith in Cinder, and knew that the rest of her friends would be okay. Her death would not be in vain. It was a little disappointing, not being able to explore more, but it was okay. It was also disappointing, knowing that Thorne wouldn't ever be able to tell her what he had started to, and that she wouldn't be able to tell him that it was okay, she loved him, and she didn't blame him at all. But she was so tired, too tired...

Her vision went black.

"She's gone." The medical aid had told Wolf and Thorne on their arrival. "I'm sorry."


End file.
